Fate and behavior of nanoparticles in waste incineration

Abstract

In recent years the problem of nanoparticles being released as a result of waste incineration has increasingly gained the attention of the (scientific) public. To assess the risks of exposure, the amounts and characteristics of potentially emitted nanoparticles need to be determined and the effects on humans and the environment investigated.

This study summarizes our current understanding of the fundamental mechanisms and processes involved in the thermal treatment of nanomaterials and presents the results of selected large-scale and pilot-scale laboratory tests and investigations. The main part of the article focuses on investigations to determine the emissions behavior of nanoparticles conducted as part of the “NanoEmission” research project, in both a pilot-scale incineration plant and an industrial waste incinerator.

Laboratory tests have confirmed that the behavior of nanoparticles in thermal processes is affected by their various chemical and physical properties, and that these properties differ greatly from those of macro-scale bulk materials made from the same substance. Previous, (semi) industrial-scale studies on commonly used, engineered oxidic nanomaterials (metal oxides like cerium dioxide and titanium dioxide) have demonstrated similar behaviors during thermal treatment in incineration plants. The results showed that the majority of nanoparticles intentionally added to incineration processes can be found again in the solid combustion residue, mainly in the bottom ash. In the context of the “NanoEmission” project, these findings were confirmed for nano-scale barium sulfate.

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